This invention relates to a method and a device for use in a sports game to display an image, and also to a computer-readable storage medium, and a game machine for playing the sports game.
Conventionally, a wide variety of computer games or video games, such as a simulation game, a role playing game, a fighting game, a puzzle game, and the like have been proposed and become popular in the world. In addition, various sports games, such as a golf game, a baseball game, a football game, a basketball game, a horse racing game, have been also sold as computer sports games and are very popular among users.
In such sports games, it often happens that the computer sports games are executed in accordance with rules which are similar to those of real sports games. This means that the computer sports games simulate the corresponding real sports games. In this event, it is possible to enhance reality of the computer sports games by determining or varying ability of each character or team in each of the computer sports games in consideration of actual records of real players and real teams. Such computer sports games have the advantage of attracting persons who are not interested in the other types of computer games and who actually enjoy the real sports games, because the computer sports games are similar to the corresponding real sports games.
Among the real sports games, there are a lot of sports games which execute exhibition matches and the like after completion of the real sports games or during an intermission, such as a half time. In general, such exhibition matches are not often limited by normal rules of the real sports games and, therefore, enable unusual and striking performance of real players which can not be seen in usual real sports games by spectators. Accordingly, such exhibition matches are favorites with the spectators or audiences.
Herein, it is to be noted that the exhibition matches are often executed by neglecting the normal rules, as mentioned above, and are not constantly performed. Therefore, it is difficult to create computer games of the exhibition matches in a conventional manner of simulating the real sports games.
For example, the basketball is one of the most popular sports in U.S.A., as well known, and, in particular, the NBA (National Basketball Association) has a great number of fans in the world. In the NBA, three-point shootout has been performed as the exhibition match by way of entertainment during all star game while a dunk contest was also performed as the exhibition match in the past. Herein, the dunk contest is for contesting, among basketball players, dunk shots which are thrown downward through a basket or goal, with one or two hands to compete with one another in terms of artistry, excitement, and a degree of difficulty. On the other hand, the three-point shootout is for contesting the number of successful three-point shots which are thrown from outside of a three-point line drawn on a basket court.
Now, it is to be noted that the artistry, the excitement, and the degree of difficulty are visibly evaluated and scored in the dunk contest. However, it is difficult to realize the dunk contest in the form of a computer sports game. In fact, nothing can be exemplified as a computer sports game of the dunk contest, because a visible evaluation basis of each evaluator is individually different from one another.
As mentioned before, a competition is made in the three-point shootout to contest a successful rate of the three-point shots thrown toward a goal or a basket from a plurality of locations determined outside of the three-point line.
In order to realize such three-point shootout in the form of a computer sports game, a technique is often adopted such that a player in the computer sports game is displayed on a display device together with a basketball and a basket and throws the basketball towards the basket in a displayed image. In this event, the basketball thrown by the player in the computer sports game is guided under a manipulation of each user. This shows that the three-point shootout which is realized as the computer sports game and which may be referred to as three-point shootout game simulates the real three-point shootout.
On playing such a simulated three-point shootout game, a user must quickly and instantaneously manipulate an analog stick, such as a joy stick, so that the basketball enters into the basket on the displayed image. Thus, the three-point shootout game as the computer sports game simulates real three-point shootout performed in the NBA.
However, it is difficult for each user to quickly and instantaneously manipulate the analog stick. This shows that each user should become proficient in the manipulation of the analog stick so as to enter the basketball into the basket and to make a shot succeed in the three-point shootout game.
In consequence, most users become boring in the three-point shootout game because it takes a long time to master the manipulation of the analog stick.
Inasmuch as the real three-point shot actually needs a difficult technique, such a method of making the three-point shootout game by simulating the real three-point shot can neither attract users"" interest nor acquire a lot of users.
In addition, the exhibition matches, such as the three-point shootout, are actually performed as subordinate matches in addition to the primary basketball. Therefore, when the three-point shootout is realized as the three-point shootout game in the computer sports games, it is preferable that the three-point shootout game itself is subordinately added as a mini-game to a primary basketball game.
It is an object of this invention to provide an image display method and a game device each of which can enjoy an exciting and thrilling exhibition game added to a primary computer sports game, by carrying out a simple manipulation.
It is another object of this invention to provide an image display method and the game device each of which can attract interest of a lot of people and which can enjoy an exciting exhibition match.
It is still another object of this invention to provide an image display method and a game device each of which can perform a three-point shootout game within the exhibition matches in a basketball.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a computer readable storage medium which stores a three-point shootout game which is simple in manipulation and which is thrilling and exciting.
It is another object of this invention to provide a computer readable storage medium of the type described, which stores the three-point shootout game as a mini-game in addition to a primary basketball game.
According to an aspect of this invention, a method is for use in displaying an image on a display device to play a game of basketball in the form of a video basketball game in response to an operation of a video game player or user and comprises the steps of displaying, on the display device, a shot image of taking a shot at a goal by a character selected in the video basketball game, and monitoring operation timing of the video game player to determine whether the shot succeeds or not. The monitoring step comprises the steps of successively varying display situations with time on the display device, stopping the varying display situations in response to the operation of the video game player to select one of the varying display situations as a selected stable display situation, and judging whether or not the selected stable display situation is coincident with a specific display situation appearing at specific timing to determine success or failure of the shot.
According to another aspect of this invention, an image display device is for use in displaying an image on a display device to play a game of basketball in the form of a video basketball game in response to an operation of a video game player. The image display device comprises displaying means for displaying, on the display device, a shot image of taking a shot at a goal by a character selected in the video basketball game, and monitoring means for monitoring operation timing of the video game player to determine whether the shot succeeds or not.
According to still another aspect of this invention, a game machine or device is for use in playing a game of basketball in the form of a video basketball game in response to an operation of a video game player by the use of a display device. The game machine comprises display means for providing, on the display device, displays of a gauge which has a shot success zone and a movable cursor, together with a character which operates as a basketball player in the video basketball game and which takes a shot at a goal, cursor control means for moving the movable cursor in a direction of the shot success zone within the gauge to stop the cursor in response to operation timing of the video game player, and judging means for judging whether or not the cursor is stopped within the shot success zone, to detect success of the shot when the cursor is stopped within the shot success zone and, otherwise, to detect failure of the shot.
According to another aspect of this invention, a computer-readable storage medium is for storing a program which plays a game of basketball in the form of a video basketball game in response to an operation of a video game player by the use of a display device. The program comprises the steps of displaying, on the display device, a shot image of taking a shot at a goal by a character selected in the video basketball game, and monitoring operation timing of the video game player to determine whether the shot succeeds or not. The video basketball game may be a three-point shootout game.